He appears as if he has stepped out of a painting from a distant age, King Charles III, in the most recent official photograph released to commemorate his coronation on May 6th. The monarch, wearing a crown on his head, a ermine cape, and holding a golden orb in one hand and a scepter in the other, stands in the throne room of Buckingham Palace in front of the camera of Hugo Burnand, with a gravitas that is sometimes striking and that makes him seem to have aged suddenly, as if the throne, which he had waited for a lifetime, had changed him in some way. Fortunately, the grins of his progeny, who are pictured beside him, lighten the atmosphere. His son William, 40 years of age, and his eldest son, George, the kings of tomorrow, faces already very much adored by their subjects. This photograph unmistakably emphasizes the royal lineage, just as it did in 2020, when Elizabeth II was photographed with her three heirs: her eldest son, then the Prince of Wales, her nephew, and her great-nephew. Behind the lens at that time was Ranald Mackechnie and the picture was taken for the purpose of celebrating “the beginning of a new decade”, as Buckingham Palace declared. Another portrait was released in 2016. George, who was then three years old, was standing on a stack of books. On this occasion too, the event was significant: the 90th birthday of the sovereign. The portrait released to celebrate Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday © Royal Family / Facebook. Today George is 9 years old and closer to the throne than his father was at the same age, but the “major” responsibilities (thankfully) are still far off. George smiles next to his grandfather and with the other participants in the ceremony, in a second photograph of equal importance which was published to mark the coronation. Queen Camilla and her ladies are also present. What is most noteworthy, however, is not them, but the fact that the heir to the throne is the only one wearing King Charles’ mantle. This is not a trick of the camera, but a specific symbolism that will be seen in the future. This content can also be viewed on the site it originates from.
